Samsung’s first standalone headset is coming in 2025, running Google’s new Android XR operating system and powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chipset.
Currently known as “Project Moohan”, the headset will feature “state-of-the-art displays”, eye tracking, hand tracking, and an external tethered battery. Beyond this, Samsung isn’t yet sharing specifications.
I went hands-on with an early headset developer kit showcasing Google’s software and Samsung’s hardware, external battery pack in my pocket. The ability to pinch and zoom in/out of locations is almost identical to what Google Earth VR did on PCs in 2016 with Steam controllers. From 2025 onwards, Google Maps will run with hand tracking and full immersion in a Samsung standalone headset. You can zoom in to Earth-scale, or go outside to see the street. You can use it to ask questions, get details on your location or rearrange the windows. I put my Meta Ray-Bans on a table and circled them with my hand and Gemini correctly identified them as “smart glasses”, but the AI also couldn’t identify how many people were in the room as I looked around at them.
Google’s 2025 addendum to Daydream is based around OpenXR and includes Photos, TV and Chrome. In addition to the above services, Google also promises automatic Play support for most apps.
I saw a nice combination of familiar interface ideas in Android XR for resizing windows and moving them around, all usable without eye calibration.
Android XR doesn’t require eye tracking even though Samsung includes it. Meta HorizonOS can be used without the need for eye tracking, while neither Quest 3 or 3S have face-tracking sensors. Apple Vision Pro’s pinch interface includes eye tracking. It was great to have a low-latency, bright passthrough in open peripherals and also a magnetic light shield which did an excellent job of sealing the scene. I preferred the light shield on and noted the hard strap would rule out bed use, where Vision Pro and Quest 3S work well with soft straps.
Perceived field of view ranged considerably based on the specific positioning of the rigid strap on the back of the head, pulling the lenses closer to my eyes depending on tightness of the strap. Samsung and Google refused to provide specifications on resolution and field of vision, perhaps because neither party was ready to make a final decision. They wanted my feedback.
I’ve been won over by soft head straps for VR headsets with worn bags for batteries and accessories taking all possible weight off the head. I would like a headset connected with a USB hub to be able to receive data as well as power. My VR headsets should also work with precision head and hand tracking in total darkness. A VR headset such as this would travel well in a backpack, which could include zippered compartments for cords, controllers and battery packs. Google and Samsung need to make it possible for Android devices to be used continuously. This is not possible today on visionOS and iOS, but it should be, and Meta is exploring the same functionality with partners in HorizonOS.
Google Services For Glasses & Headsets
Google’s range of transparent and shaded glasses demos range from light to very light, with the most impressive being a binocular waveguide featuring roughly two bright lines of text in the center of my vision. One of the demos featured a mini-map that rotated in my field of vision as I moved in any direction, just like in a videogame mini map. Google’s monocular glasses display was a turn-off for me. I hated a monocular glasses display Google showed.
Translation and navigation concepts shown across this range of glasses make clear Google’s ambitions are bigger than headsets.
Android Accessories
A Google representative suggested in an interview that touch typing on any surface would be a
within a year or two. Zuckerberg’s
surpassed keyboards a few short years later at Meta.
We tried the
in 2024 with its integrated eyewear interface. The TapXR wristband is helping me learn to type with one hand, and both Apple Watches and AirPods use simple gestures when answering or dismissing phone calls. Meta showed simple gestures on its wristband when paired with
.solved problemA combination of haptic bands and watches could be powerful, especially if eye tracking is included. Samsung has said that it plans to release controllers for its system along with the battery.sees wristband interfacesThe Android XR pitch is to make almost any device an accessory for Gemini or computer vision. Google also aims to provide support for Unity PolySpatial, which allows multitasking volumetric applications. Google Maps’ map of the globe is superior to Microsoft Flight Simulator, according to my experience. I was also astonished when finding the street corner of New York, as each building appeared in 3D. The lack of photorealistic avatars or games by Google leaves a big hole in the market. A hypothetical Quest Pro 2 could fill this gap. Porting is supposed to be an easy process from HorizonOS to Android XR, but some developers will also remember things like Google Daydream and Stadia before they commit to a project on Google Play that will require years of support.
“It’s fairly straightforward to bring apps and games to Android XR,” Virtual Desktop developer Guy Godin wrote to UploadVR. It supports the majority of OpenXR Extensions that Quest/Pico currently support. It took me only a couple of hours to port my OpenXR application over and it worked right out of the gate. It’s refreshing for me to be able to work with an open platform, rather than one that tries to copy and block us. “I’m grateful to be able to offer more choices to consumers and am excited to introduce the best PC-streaming solution for Android XR. “AirMouseAvatars & The Long ViewOrion glassesGoogle’s services are useful in far more places more than just VR headsets, but the absence of photorealistic avatars in my demo could suggest the Samsung and Google team-up might fall short on this aspect of the technology, just as Meta could be preparing to get its long-brewing Codec Avatar technology into a hypothetical Quest Pro 2, as Apple works to mature its groundbreaking Persona technology.
Meta is at the cusp of carrying a continuous call flowing seamlessly from a Ray-Ban glasses view in WhatsApp to representation as a hyper-realistic avatar in a HorizonOS headset. Even if Google can get 90% of Meta’s VR storefront ported over to Android XR, it could still lag Meta and Apple in a fundamental area during a defining year in personal computing’s revolution.
Then again, not having super-realistic avatars is also a benefit for some types of online communication. Quest Pro shows that good eye and face tracking can be very useful, but only if it’s done well. I would have preferred to try out games and controllers instead of the monocle. But there will be many more opportunities for Samsung, Google, and other Android XR partner to show off such features. The Google Maps experience in Android XR is sublime. This platform has real potential if Google gets Gemini right.